Hurstbridge and District Local History Group

Based at Allwood Neighbourhood House – 901 Main Road Hurstbridge 3099

Contact-Pam Lawson 9718 2271 email: pajala@netspace.au

Formed in 1998 to carry on the work of a previous history group the Allwood history group That, the Hurstbridge and District local history group, also based at Allwood Neighbourhood House, continues that groups endeavours to collect, record, collate and preserve the Hurstbridge townships rich, varied and ongoing social, environmental and built history.

The group’s collection includes historical information relating to the first inhabitants of the district, the Wurundjeri William people – early settlers-the local fruit growing industry and the townships ongoing built and social growth……. Displays of photographs and memorabilia include a display of found objects from the Caledonia Gold Fields (St Andrews).

Image with click here to go to

A chronological list of events 1840 – 2015

Inside Our History Room

Hurstbridge and Local Districts History

Hurstbridge was first settled in 1842 by Cornelius Hayley, a grazier. The area was originally known as Allwood, after the Homestead built there. The town was renamed in 1924. The town’s current name is from Henry Hurst, who built the first log bridge across the Diamond Creek, upstream from the present Monash Bridge. In 1866, Henry Hurst was fatally wounded by a bushranger, Robert Bourke. Bourke was captured and tied to a wheel of a wagon under a tree (now known as Bourke’s tree) until troopers from nearby Queenstown arrived. Bourke was tried and found guilty of the murder, and was later hanged.

For many years the area was characterised by orchards and nurseries, and in 1912 a rail line was extended to Hurstbridge to transport fruit to Melbourne. As a result of this rail connection, a settlement started developing near the bridge. A post office opened in 1912, and the current single lane bridge designed by Sir John Monash opened in 1918. The township was originally known as Hursts Bridge until 1915, and then Hurst Bridge until about 1954. Further development of the town occurred in the post-war years, and electricity was connected in 1957.

The artist Albert Tucker moved to a 5-acre (20,000 m²) property in Hurstbridge in the 1960s, where he lived for many years. A series of paintings from the time depict the natural bushland around his property

Image Link Victorian collections

Useful and interesting links and reference

https://victoriancollections.net.au/

https://en. wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurstbridge_Victoria

http://www.australiancemeteries.com/vic/nillumbik/hurst.htm

http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper

Login

Image and Login Box

Lost your Password?

• Go to Allwood Neighbourhood House Inc

Mailing List

Please Subscribe to Our Mailing List.

Online Form

Subscribe

Fields marked with a * are required

First Name *

Last Name *

Email *

Submit